Brazil’s highest electoral court has banned former President Jair Bolsonaro from contesting elections for the next eight years. This is considered a big blow for the right-wing leader. Bolsonaro has been found guilty of misusing his power and media during the last election.

These allegations against Bolsonaro

Bolsonaro was found guilty by five of the seven judges who ruled against him. At the same time, two judges were in support of Bolsonaro. With this decision, Jair Bolsonaro’s hopes of returning in the 2026 elections are over.

According to media reports, in July 2022, Bolsonaro had a meeting with foreign ambassadors. It is alleged that in this meeting, Balsonaro spread lies and misleading things about the Brazilian electoral system and also questioned its credibility. The special thing is that this meeting was live-streamed on YouTube.

Bolsonaro talked about appealing the decision

The panel of judges who found Bolsonaro guilty was presided over by Judge Alexandre de Moraes. In announcing his decision, the judge said that the Brazilian authorities have shown that they will not tolerate criminal radicalism and attacks on the country’s power.

Also, misleading news and wrong information will not be tolerated. However, Bolsonaro rejected the allegations levelled against him outright. Speaking to a local radio station, Bolsonaro said he would go to court against the decision.

It is noteworthy that Jair Bolsonaro lost to his rival Lula de Silva in a close contest in the last general election. Riots broke out in Brazil against the results, and Bolsonaro supporters attempted to break into Brazilian government buildings on 8 January.